Moving across country... need advice.

just find things at the new area you moving to that would remind you of home. i movied from miami to texas so i know what its like to move some where very different

Hmm, I think everyone has their own thing that makes the new place feel like home. For me, I need to have a favorite table at a favorite little coffee shop/ cafe. I've already found that, a few months in advance of moving from Chicago to Columbus, so I'm happy. :-) (Have had two trips there so far.)

Visiting ahead of time definitely helps. If you can't, (or in addition), doing a lot of internet research is what helps ease my mind. I moved to Pasadena without ever having set foot there before, and what made that tolerable is that I had found a "clickable tour" on the internet and navigated my way through Pasadena that way, got a clear mental image, identified interesting spots, and already felt somewhat at home before I got there.

Beyond that, if you will be going to a new job, you'll be meeting people there; if you have kids, you'll probably be meeting people through your kids; there are usually "welcome wagon" type organizations that give you leads on community events.

Bon voyage!

As I stated, there are no kids. I'm not interested in making the place feel like my present home, I was really wanting advice on the actual moving process.

L.R.R.Hood- I moved from NY to Florida some years ago. I learned a few things in the process.

Get rid of as much stuff as you can BEFORE the move. If you haven't used something for some time, you don't need it.

Is the climate of your two places similar? Since I was moving south, I got rid of most of my heavy clothing. Kept a winter jacket, and a few warm things, for visits up north.

Moving long distances is expensive, and is charged by the pound. Often it is cheaper to get rid of any old furniture that you don't really want, and replace it when you get to your new location. If you know where you will live in your new place, try to figure which of your old stuff will fit in, and get rid of the rest. A garage sale will net you a few extra dollars that you can use for your move.

Keep a list of things that you need to do in the old place, and the new place. Moving entails so many details that you need to be very precise in knowing where you are at, or you will surely forget something.

Do as much as you can in advance. I am talking about arranging for phone, electricity, cable turn off and opening. The Post Office has a moving kit that you can get to inform people of your move.

http://www.homestore.com/Move/Moving/DIY/Pets.asp?poe=homestore

Thanks!

I was thinking about hiring movers to help load stuff onto a U-haul, and hiring movers to help unload it... and we drive our stuff ourselves.

I'm not sure what to do with the cats, though

If you are driving, couldn't you keep them in pet carriers on the truck with you? You could take them out for exercise and feeding on your stops. Many rest stops on highways have pet walking areas. You might want to get a leash for the cats. You wouldn't want them to get nervous, and run away while you are on the road.

If you are going 1,000 miles I would assume that you would stop at least one night. When you enter the state where you will stay the night, often there is a "Welcome Center". They have coupon books with discounts on motels. You could call ahead to see if a place allows pets.

That's a good idea. I've traveled that far before non-stop, not sure if we're going to do that again.

When my parents moved recently, they put their cat on some tranquilizers, so she didn't freak out during the trip and the unloading process.

Its a thought.

Yeah, but did you do that after you had gone through all the things that you need to do for the move? Try to make the move as stress free as possible. If you give yourself a night to relax, I think that it will go easier for you. Remember, you will have a lot to do once your stuff arrives at your new place!

If you do decide to rent a truck and move yourselves checkout the rental pricing closely.

I found that U-Haal has low daily fees but high "per mile" charges where Ryder tends to have higher daily fees and much lower "per mile" charges for example.

Either one can have advantages over the other depending on how far you are going and how quickly you plan on getting from point A to point B.

That's great advice fishin'. Thanks.

That's a good point Phoenix

Lot's of good advice here. Just wanted to wish you the best of luck. I'm glad you won't be hiring a moving company since I made that mistake 4 years ago and will never do it again. I would have been better off getting rid of everything I had and buying new stuff when we got here. They destroyed all my furnature and it cost me a fortune for the movers and to replace everything they destroyed. When I was getting ready to sue them, I got a letter from their lawyer saying they filed bankrupt :-(
As Phoenix said, get rid of everything that you really don't need or doesn't mean much to you and you'll be glad you did. The cat's should be ok in a cat carrier.

Good luck and have a safe trip.

Penske Penske Penske Penske!

We rented a truck from Penske for a monster move last summer, and I can't recommend them highly enough. There is no mileage fee, if your truck is more than four or five years old (I can't remember exactly what), your rental is free. I've had problems in the past with both U-Haul and Ryder, and was so relieved at how smoothly this experience went.

Granted, we were moving from Washington to Wisconsin via New Jersey, so the unlimited mileage was a damn fine feature. And they gave us eight days to move from Seattle to Madison, which is enough time to stop and see some stuff along the way, if you are so inclined.




And spend the money for good boxes. Having everything packed in solid boxes that are the same size makes the whole packing and unpacking process so much easier.

(Having moved from California to Illinois to California to Washington to Wisconsin in the past six years makes me feel like I should have more sage advice, but.... ah, well. Super-8 motels are pet friendly, and another chain is, as well -- La Quinta, I think.)

Great, thanks, you two! Penske... I'll write that down. I have some time yet, just thought I'd start the planning now.

Hi there! I'm moving across the country: Boston - Colorado. I'm doing it alone with my 2 cats. I'm looking for advice as well. However, I looked into moving companies and UHaul options. I've spoken with several friends who have made transatlantic moves as well as coast to coast. Everyone has informed me that going with a major well-known moving company, that's bonded and insured is the way to go, if you want your stuff on-time and in tact. It costs a bit more, but worth it. I realize this isn't much info, but I've just started his process and I'm really overwhelmed since I need to accomplish this move in the next 3 weeks.

Check out a topic I started on the subject a few months ago when I moved from California to New Mexico. I, too, moved only myself and had to decide between moving companies and doing it myself. I posted the whole research and decision process in the topic so others could learn from it. It had a lot of good input and suggestions from other members.

Moving Advice Needed - U-haul trailer or moving company?